


To be human

by orphan_account



Category: Death Parade (Anime)
Genre: Alcohol, Decim is cute, Denial of Feelings, Drunken Kissing, Enemies to Lovers, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-26
Updated: 2017-09-26
Packaged: 2019-01-05 18:50:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,835
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12195624
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: "You’re the new one, then?” He sounded annoyed. Keep it short, then he can leave.“Yes. My name is Decim.” The man gave a curt bow, looking back up at him, “And, you are…?”“Ginti.” That was enough. The red headed spirit was getting tired of the politeness. He huffed, resting his cheek in his hand. “Hope you make a good drink.”





	To be human

When Decim first arrived to the afterlife as an arbiter, Ginti knew that he didn’t like him.

Being forced to visit, as ordered by Nona, the red haired arbiter begrudgingly rode the elevator down to the newcomer’s floor. Clavis chuckled nervously off to the side, practically being suffocated by the large man’s angry atmosphere. As the elevator came to a stop, Ginti stepped out before the escort had a chance to say anything. Doors closed behind him and he sighed. He was going to miss Quinn. He didn’t mind her. Though, everything seemed the same so far, which eased him. 

Ginti made his way to the empty bar, taking a seat as he examined the area. Just the same as before. Seems like the new one hadn’t taken the time, or interest, to add his own flare. Which brought him back to his current situation; where was the new arbiter?

As if to answer him, he heard light footsteps moving into the room. He looked up and met eyes with his new neighbor. A tall, yet lithe, man with piercing blue eyes and soft white hair. His expression was seemingly blank. Ginti twitched as he watched him make his way to the bar, enraptured by his eyes. Was it just him, or was the cross of the arbiter only now appearing? 

“Mh. Sorry. I wasn’t keeping you long?” The man muttered, cutting off Ginti’s musings. The smaller man almost seemed like he was distracted, being taken away from something else he had been busy with. Ginti grunted in response.

“Long enough. You’re the new one, then?” He sounded annoyed. Keep it short, then he can leave.

“Yes. My name is Decim.” The man gave a curt bow, looking back up at him, “And, you are…?”

“Ginti.” That was enough. The red headed spirit was getting tired of the politeness. He huffed, resting his cheek in his hand. “Hope you make a good drink.”

It took Decim a few moments for him to catch on before he nodded, turning and starting to mix a drink. Ginti couldn’t help but chuckle. This boy was so naive, more so than should be expected. Obviously not social. Though, where he lacked experience in talking, he seemed to be doing a good job with brewing. Pale hands set down a drink in front of Ginti.

Silence was shared between them as the drink was enjoyed. As time went on, Ginti started to catch on about the difference he was seeing on the floor that made him uneasy. Shadows in the corner, figures, up on the balcony. He narrowed his eyes at the other, setting down his drink.

“You’re messing with those dolls from downstairs?” A statement that came out harsher than intended. Decim froze, if only for a moment. He nodded, silent. Ginti continued, “Why are you doing that? You don’t need to mess with all of that.”

Decim was quiet, looking down at the counter as he calculated his answer. After a few moments, he looked at him plainly. “I think they’re interesting..”

“Interesting?”

“The humans. I think they’re interesting.”

Silence laid out before them, this time with a tense air. 

Ginti decided then that he didn’t like him. It was different. He couldn’t understand. Before he could stop himself, he stood up. “Why? There’s no reason to. This is our job. They are our job. Nothing else.” He started to turn away from the bar, glaring at the quiet man. “Don’t you think that’ll affect your judgment?” He questioned, more of a matter-of-fact. He left the bar without saying anything else. 

It had been weeks after their first interaction. They’d seen each other now and again, but the two kept to themselves. Ginti would purposely avoid the other, and Decim seemed to always anger him no matter what he did. Everyone else saw it as one sided hate. Ginti didn’t mind it. He didn’t want to see the soft arbiter anyway. 

...

Nona had showed up at the Viginti, declaring a party. Not of the unusual, though Ginti groaned at having it at his bar. He busied himself behind his counter as Nona handled everything and everyone started to fill in. Castra, Oculus, Clavis, and even some of the other arbiters. As Ginti tended to his cat, Memine, he could hear a loud commotion coming from Nona, who was already tipsy. 

Nona had her arm around Decim’s waist, shouting and celebrating that he had showed up. Great. Ginti grumbled at the sight. Though, he couldn’t help but feel the upperhand. Decim seemed greatly uncomfortable. He probably didn’t know a majority of the other arbiters, and he wasn’t exactly a social butterfly. As Quinn joined in their celebration, Ginti returned to fixing drinks. He didn’t want to think about that outcast. 

Only an hour went by until the party went into a casual atmosphere and things settled and everyone got comfortable. Ginti found that he was almost enjoying it. That was, until he heard those same soft footsteps he had heard weeks ago. He turned to see Decim finding himself a seat at the bar, in front of him. They locked gazes, Decim’s blank eyes and Ginti’s intimidating bright ones. 

Decim cleared his throat, and surprisingly was the one to break the silence. “Could you get me a drink? Anything is fine..” Ginti seemed to soften a bit. The poor kid seemed exhausted. He supposed he could spare him the argument.

With a nod, Ginti began to mix him a drink. Sadly, Ginti was only known for his strong drinks. He smirked when Decim made a face after finishing the first glass. What Ginti thought was him being hard on the other, turned to be hitting nothing as Decim nodded for another one. Was he serious? Alright. Replacing the drink, Ginti watched him curiously. 

As the hours went on and the party died out, the last few of the other’s left the bar, going to their respective floors. All that was left was Ginti and Decim. And not much had been left of Decim.

Ginti had figured out that Decim didn’t understand his own alcohol tolerance yet. He had been surprised the other man wasn’t blacked out at this point. He watched in amusement as the quiet man held his head in his hands. He wasn’t any different, if not more quiet. Ginti tapped the counter in front of him to make sure he was still there. Decim jumped, earning a snicker from the red head.

“Mh. Sorry..” He muttered under his breath, sitting up. He moved to stand up, staggering. Ginti had moved around the bar to help him, before he could stop himself. He decided he wasn’t absolutely horrible that he’d leave him like that. He didn’t like it either. Ginti huffed. 

“You alright?” Ginti asked him, almost with a hint of concern. “Do you think you can make it back to Quindecim?” 

Decim grabbed onto Ginti’s arm to have something to hold onto. He stared at the ground, trying to come up with an answer. He wasn’t sure of anything, he hadn’t actually experienced being drunk before. He was tired, and dizzy. 

Ginti sighed. “Let’s get you sitting down.” He grumbled, leading him over to the couch in the corner of the lounge. He sat down with him, jumping when he felt Decim press his head into his arm. He looked at him curiously.

“My head..” Decim whined. Ginti didn’t know what to think. It certainly seemed like he was more expressive when drunk. Ginti squirmed against him. Decim was starting to lean himself more onto him. He grabbed the white haired man by his shoulders pushing him back to look at him. He looked disheveled, warmth dusting his cheeks.

Suddenly, Ginti found Decim too close. He could feel his hot breath against his face. Before he could stop him, he felt soft lips pressed against his, and the smaller man crawling into his lap. Ginti grunted, eyes fluttering as he pressed back, if only for a second before pulling away, trying to hold Decim at a distance.

“Decim. Stop.” Decim looked up at Ginti, confused. “ What are you doing?”

“I saw it. In a memory.” Oh. From one of his judgements. “I wanted to try it.” His speech was slurred slightly, soft and innocent. Ginti remembered his likeness towards humans and shook his head. 

“We shouldn’t. Those are human memories. It’s not the same for us.” Ginti’s voice was steady. 

Decim almost seemed disappointed, and those bright blue eyes looked up at Ginti, pleading and drawing him in. “Why can’t it be ours? I want to know how it feels.”

Ginti tried to decide. This boy asked too many questions that he never thought of. He didn’t need to question the system, or himself. He didn’t know how to answer, because he never asked himself “Why?”. He licked at his own lips. Wouldn’t they get in trouble for this? Before he knew what he was doing, he was pressing his lips against the other’s. It felt risky, and if he had a pulse, it’d be soaring. Ginti didn’t know why, but he liked the feeling. 

Decim melted into the kiss, holding onto Ginti by the front of his shirt, his smaller hands balled up in the cloth like he could fall off any moment. Their lips moved together, and Decim let out a small sigh. Ginti raised his hand to hold onto the back of Decim’s neck, tilting his head to deepen the kiss. He’d seem memories of humans doing this, he knew what to do. He pressed his tongue against the white haired man’s lips, causing him to gasp in surprise and allowing Ginti to slip in. This earned a muffled grunt from Decim, tangling his tongue with Ginti’s.

Their tongues danced together, Ginti exploring Decim and Decim letting him. The younger arbiter suddenly felt so small and fragile in Ginti’s hands, but he knew he was anything but. It was a sense of vulnerability that Decim was allowing the other to ravish him without fear. Suddenly, Ginti was overcome with his fight or flight response and pushed away from Decim. They both panted, gasping for air. Decim’s lips were wet, looking up at Ginti with something in his eyes. They were enemies. Ginti shouldn’t be allowing him to do this. The feelings and emotions that the other man dug out of him were ones that he never felt and wasn’t sure he wanted to. He never liked change, he didn’t like new things. 

“Was that enough?” Ginti plainly said, composing himself. It seemed to sober Decim up, as he nodded his head and slid off of his lap, looking forward. The red haired man stood up, looking down at Decim with a look of indifference and slight irritation. “Let’s go."

...

From that night, Ginti and Decim’s meetings were back to the same. Avoiding, fighting, and nothing else. He didn’t hear of Decim’s questions, nor did he visit his bar unless told to by Nona. He made Ginti feel things he’d never felt. Arbiters weren’t supposed to have feelings, emotions, or human characteristics. It was like Decim was changing everything he knew. 

A visit from Nona caught him off guard. The woman slunk in and sat herself at the bar. Ginti sighed and turned his attention to her. Silence, like she was in deep thought. She locked eyes with him, and Ginti knew it was a serious conversation.

“You know that Decim is different.” It was a plain statement. Ginti stared as she went on, frowning. “Whatever happens with him, just, don’t tell Oculus. He doesn’t like the idea of..” She stopped herself, shaking her head. “Ginti, we formed Decim with human emotions. Something that’s not allowed. Oculus has threatened to destroy him.”

Ginti was silent, staring at her. “What?” He muttered. He didn’t like him, or so he told himself. But, the idea of Decim being destroyed made him feel empty. The whole scenario was making his head spin.

“If someone like you, which I know you would, were to complain to him. He’d be gone. So,” She waved her hand, putting on a smile, “All good things to the big man, alright? Anyway, you didn’t seem happy to hear of the idea of Decim being gone, eh?” She smirked. There was the sly manners he was used to. Ginti growled and rolled his eyes.

“No. I hate him.” He sighed, looking off and inspecting his water dolls. “But, I can’t say that I hate using him as a punching bag. Someone’s going to have to take it.”

“That’s something I also wanted to talk about.” Nona hummed, tapping at the counter. Ginti looked back over to her, raising his eyebrow. “I heard about what happened. On the night of that party when everyone left.”

“Ugh..” Ginti put his hand of his face, getting ready to groan and explain, but Nona cut him off.

“He talked to me about it. He likes to ask me questions, like I know the answers. You know, give an inch and he takes a mile.” She snorted. Ginti did notice how Nona acted like a mother hen to Decim. “I told him, that hugs were for friends, and kissing is for love.” She giggled like a schoolgirl, “Then he asked what that was. I told him what love was. Like how Quinn is to her drinks and he is to his mannequins, but for a person. He said he felt that to you.”

Ginti frowned and tilted his head. He was utterly confused. “What? You mean he likes me?”

“And you don’t like him? Ginti, it’s obvious.” 

Silence was shared between them, until Nona slapped her hand down on the counter loudly, sliding off the chair.

“Then it’s settled! I’ll have you know, if you hurt him, I’ll have your ass handed to you.” She sneered and promptly left the room. 

...

The travel down to Quindecim was just like the first time. Grumpy, uninterested, and tense. But there was something else. Ginti’s conflicting thoughts made him a silent bomb about to burst. Clavis restrained himself from saying anything, leaving the hot headed arbiter at the 15th floor. Ginti walked to the bar, again empty. Decim must be busy, probably cleaning up from the last judgement. He walked around, staring up at the tank of jellyfish. The mannequins Decim left laying around made him uncomfortable, and he was impatient. He walked behind the bar, then off to the back rooms. He’d just go look for him then.

Without knocking, he opened doors. Guest rooms, storage room with mannequins, more guest rooms. He hadn’t visited Quinn in ages before Decim, he forgot the layout. He finally stumbled upon a room different than the others. It was more dim, and a sleeping form laid on a bed. The noise of coming in the room must’ve woken him, and he sat up in the bed. 

“Mh? Ginta? I’m sorry. Is everything alright?”

“Ah, sorry.” Ginta gave a short bow out of respect, “I didn’t realize you were.. Sleeping.”

“Oh..” Decim didn’t seem to know how to respond, looking around and shuffling on his bed. “Come in, I suppose. What did you need?”

Ginti walked in, closing the door behind him. It was weird being in Decim’s room, he’d never think of the idea of something so personal. He sat beside him on the bed, looking around. Mannequin parts occupied some corners, along with some small treasures. Decim seemed to collect strange small things that’d peak his interest. Gifts from Nona, a rock, a fancy bottle from Quinn’s collections, one of Ginti’s own water dolls. Wait, when did he take that? Must have been from a spar at his bar he had left.

Remembering what he came there for, Ginti cleared his throat and leaned back against the wall. “Nona talked to me. She told me what’s up.” Decim blinked, and he continued. “You have feelings for me?”

“Yes.” Without hesitation, Decim answered. He looked down at his hands folded in his lap. “I enjoy spending time with you. Even if it’s fighting. Is that okay?” Decim looked up at the other. He acted like nothing was wrong, no shame or question in it.

“I mean, yeah..” Ginti didn’t know what to say. Was he hoping for anything else? “Are you sure?”

“What do you mean?”

“I…” It wasn’t that Decim was hard to talk to, but he left no room for argument. He looked over at him, and really then he realized how he felt towards the other. The same bright eyes that captivated him on their first meeting, tricking his own eyes with his cross. His soft white hair, curly and slightly messy, in an oversized shirt and baggy sleep pants. A vulnerability that he only showed to Ginti, when he chose to. The way he felt like he had a heart in his own chest with how the other made him felt. He shook his head, smirking. “You’re an idiot.” 

**Author's Note:**

> What, you thought something was gonna happen at the end there? Maybe if this gets a lot of attention, I can post a naughty second chapter if you all request it!!  
> I know some characters might be slightly OOC and I might've got some info wrong, I haven't watched it in months but I had the urge to write since there is a lack of Decinti!


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